Signs365 Laminate failure

[visual800]

Went to a client I did some signs for back last year, he called said his signs were fading out, actually they were "browning"

Got back to shop and looked up the date of the ordered prints and immediately contacted signs365, emailed them the pic at 11am per their request on chat, I have yet to hear back as if they will reprint. There was one part of the convo I did not appreciate. Right off the bat telling me the material chosen is considered "Temp"

I dont know how this will end up and Im going to be patient one more day and await a response. Im hoping to God this was not a widespread issue and was only isolated. Im not making this post to "bash" them. I appreciate what they have done for my biz over the years. I hope they step up to the plate

I have attached the chat and pic of sign, the background of the sign was white

 

[Billct2]

I will be interested to see their response. A "5 year" film should last more than a year.

 

[LarryB]

I've never gotten 5 years out of Oracal calendared laminate. I'm lucky to get 2-3 years. Anything going outside which needs to be laminated gets 3M cast.

 

[jman]

Anytime I have a issue with anything from them which is rare but it does happen, I call and ask for Ernie. Ernie always gets things taken care of for me and doesn't give me a run around. I have also talked to Mike I believe and he's done just as good job.

 

[visual800]

they have yet to respond, i will keep this board informed

 

[oksigns]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, per the material spec sheet, it is rated for 5 years under ideal conditions UNPRINTED.

Throw solvent ink on it, unseasonable weather AND laminated, then subtract a year or more from that.

 

[T_K]

I've used tons of Oracal 3640 vinyl with 210 laminate in the past. I wouldn't expect more than 2 years max outdoors on this product. Between the sun and heat in Texas, signs here take a beating.

From the picture, it looks like these are in full sun most of the day. So the product will age a lot faster than something in partial shade.

I'm not suggesting you shouldn't pursue this with your printer, but it'll probably be a tough sell to get them to reprint.

 

[Gino]

Seems to be a trend being set here. I will be very curious, as well, to see their response and resolution for this. I have a serious problem with them as well and since I broke my back, am not able to pursue at the moment, but let it be known, Matt, I will be back.

 

[lgroth]

Wow... I've been seeing a LOT of posts lately on this problem, all seem to be calendared lams getting hit by the sun. The sales people here don't like dealing with me much on this, because anything that's going outdoor for longer than a weekend long event, or short term store promos I always push to do cast over cast, and they have to try to sell it to the customer. I win most of the time and our customers usually agree to the extra cost for a better product and outdoor lifespan... I'm going to show our sales manager some of these posts, and tell her THIS is why I push so hard to use premium materials if they're going out in the elements.

 

[a77]

Just curious, what would people here expect signs365 to do in this matter?

Assuming it is known to the buyer the exact material used, and what kind of inks used, what else would the supplier have to do? If you're saying they have to reprint for free, is it up to them to go to oracal and try to get a claim going to compensate them?

This isn't like the other case where the grommets were messed up so bad on those banners and should have been caught by QC. They just gave you what you ordered.

 

[Baz]

Like i mentioned before in other threads.

I use 210 on a regular basis. Signs have lasted 6 to 8 years and apart from about 1/8" shrinkage along the edges, The prints still looked good.

Either the south has received bad batches of the material or the sun is really beating down hard compared to the north.

 

[Billct2]

Good to hear that Baz, I use it a lot for "economy" outdoor signs, but expect it to last longer than a couple years.

 

[player]

Seems to be a trend being set here. I will be very curious, as well, to see their response and resolution for this. I have a serious problem with them as well and since I broke my back, am not able to pursue at the moment, but let it be known, Matt, I will be back.

Did I miss your back troubles? When did you break your back? Are you OK? I wish you a speedy recovery...

 

[visual800]

they have responded, they will reprint and asked me to send the signs to them as they have never had this happen before.

i have used these prints in the sun before and have lasted longer than 1 year, most vehicle lettering up to 7 years with no issues. After this I will go to a more premium product

 

[TSC1985]

they have responded, they will reprint and asked me to send the signs to them as they have never had this happen before.

i have used these prints in the sun before and have lasted longer than 1 year, most vehicle lettering up to 7 years with no issues. After this I will go to a more premium product

Question on this: does Signs 365 also give back the cost of your labor and or substrates for replacing the material?

 

[T_K]

Like i mentioned before in other threads.

I use 210 on a regular basis. Signs have lasted 6 to 8 years and apart from about 1/8" shrinkage along the edges, The prints still looked good.

Either the south has received bad batches of the material or the sun is really beating down hard compared to the north.

Yes, in the southern US we get hammered by the sun. Much more so that northern US or Canada. Plus we get over 100*F / 39*C air temperature for extended periods of time. So the prints & substrate in the sun get MUCH hotter than in other regions.
Have you ever cooked eggs on the sidewalk? Baked cookies in your car while you're at work? That's the kind of sun and heat we get down here.

 

[Pixels Are Bad Mmmkay?]

they have responded, they will reprint and asked me to send the signs to them as they have never had this happen before.

i have used these prints in the sun before and have lasted longer than 1 year, most vehicle lettering up to 7 years with no issues. After this I will go to a more premium product

We've used the Oracal 3651 with 210 laminate from Signs365 in the past and it's really quite durable and long lasting from my experiences. I would however, never recommend it for vehicles. I'm so glad we print in house now and very seldom have to rely on signs 365 anymore. We've since replaced 3651/210 as our economy go to with 3551RA (7 year unprinted) with 290 (8 year) cast laminate. The majority of what we do, we use 3951RA cast with 290 cast laminate, though.

 

[rossmosh]

It's good that they're stepping up to replace it, but it seems like you should swap it out for a better vinyl and laminate. Wouldn't it be foolish to run into this same problem in 24 months?

 

[d fleming]

It's good that they're stepping up to replace it, but it seems like you should swap it out for a better vinyl and laminate. Wouldn't it be foolish to run into this same problem in 24 months?

Exactly, offer to pay the difference to step it up to cast so you're not here again in 12 months losing a customer.

 

[a77]

Question on this: does Signs 365 also give back the cost of your labor and or substrates for replacing the material?

You're kidding right?

 

[T_K]

You're kidding right?

This was my first thought too. But they are asking him to pass the sign off to them. It's not just returning the prints. He's losing the substrate as well, instead of being able to reuse it.

Legit question, but I wouldn't expect them to pay for it.